NCERT / CBSE NOTES | Class 8th (VIII) : Chapter Summary

The Making of the National Movement: 1870s to 1947

Emergence of Nationalism

By the 1850s, Indians from all walks of life were beginning
to realize their loss of identity and wanted to end the British rule.

In the 1870s and 1880s the dissatisfaction was intensified with new laws
imposed by the British. The Arms Act of 1878 was passed that stopped Indians
from owning arms. This was followed by the Vernacular Press Act, which allowed
the British to confiscate the assets of any newspaper that wrote against them.
The final straw came when the British opposed the Ilbert Bill, which allowed
Europeans to be tried by Indians in court.

This led to the setting up of organizations like the Indian National Congress,
the Indian Association, the Bombay Presidency Association and the Poona
Sarvajanik Sabha. The Indian National Congress was formed in December 1885.

The Congress, in its initial years, adopted a moderate outlook in its demands.
It demanded more Indians in high positions in the government, the abolishment
of the Arms Act, the separation of the executive from the judiciary, and the
freedom of speech and expression for the Indians.

The Congress passed resolutions on issues like forest laws, the salt tax, and
the welfare of Indian labourers working abroad.

By the 1890s, the moderate rationale of the Congress was questioned by many
radically thinking Indians like Lala Lajpat Rai, Bal Gangadhar Tilak and Bipin
Chandra Pal. These leaders believed in self-reliance rather waiting for the
British government to understand the needs of the Indians.

In 1905, the British partitioned Bengal which enraged Indians leading to the
Swadeshi Movement. It advocated national education, self-help, Swadeshi
enterprise and the use of Indian languages. The partition of Bengal was
supported by the All India Muslim League, an organization formed in Dacca, in
1906.

The Congress split in 1907, and was now led by the moderates, while the radical
group led by Tilak worked separately. In 1915, both the groups united again and
signed the historic Lucknow Pact in 1916 with the All India Muslim League.

People's Initiatives in Nationalism

Mahatma Gandhi followed non-violence in all his actions and
practices and his ideals were adopted by many during the protests and
satyagrahas across India during the freedom struggle.

In Kheda district of Gujarat, poor farmers and peasants protested, through
non-violent demonstrations, against the high taxes imposed by the British.

In the interiors of Tamil Nadu and in coastal Andhra Pradesh, protests were
held outside liquor shops preventing people from entering it. Such protests are
referred to as picketing.

While in Guntur District of Andhra Pradesh, forest satyagrahas were held
against the unjust forest laws of the British. In Sind and Bengal, the
Khilafat Non-Cooperation Movement found the support of many peasants and
traders.

In Punjab, the Sikhs started a movement to remove corrupt priests in gurudwaras
supported by the British, whereas in Assam, tea plantation workers boycotted
the plantations and declared that it was the wish of Gandhiji to do so.

The peasants of Pratapgarh in Uttar Pradesh stopped the practice of unlawfully
removing tenants from the land they rented, and credited Gandhiji for their own
efforts. Gandhiji was considered a messiah, who would help Indians sort
all their problems.

Growth of Mass Nationalism

By the 18th century, Mahatma Gandhi recognized global
recognition for his non-violent marches against racist discrimination in South
Africa. After coming to India in 1916, he travelled around trying to understand
the problems faced by people.

The First World War started and this changed the economic and political
situation of India. As the war expenses increased, the British increased taxes
in India. This resulted in an increase in food prices and many villagers were
forced to join the British Army. The soldiers returned to India with a
desire to end the colonial rule.

Indians were also influenced by the ideas of socialism being propagated in the
Russian Revolution of 1917. In 1917, Gandhiji initiated the Champaran Movement
and the Kheda Satyagraha and led a movement for the mill workers in Ahmedabad,
in 1918.

These movements were followed by the Rowlatt Satyagraha against the Rowlatt
Act. Both Gandhiji and Mohammad Ali Jinnah opposed the Rowlatt Act and called
to observe the 6th April, 1919, as a day of non-violent
opposition. This became the first all-India fight against the British rule.

The Jallianwala Bagh Massacre and the Khilafat Movement triggered the next step
towards mass nationalism, The Non-Cooperation Movement. It was led by the
Mahatma Gandhi and the leaders of the Khilafat agitation, Jinnah and Shaukat
Ali.

The Non-Cooperation Movement gained momentum between the years 1921 and 1922.
All these events through the years 1915 to 1922 saw the growth of mass
nationalism in India.

Important National Events Between 1922 – 1939

On the 4th February, 1922, the peasants of
Chauri Chaura, set fire to a police station, killing 22 policemen. Gandhiji,
saddened by this incident, called off the Non-Cooperation Movement as this was
against his ideals of non-violence and satyagraha.

With the end of the Non-Cooperation Movement, the Congress called upon its
supporters to take up constructive work in villages. A group of radical leaders
like Chitta Ranjan Das and Motilal Nehru wanted to fight the elections and make
their presence known to the government.

Gandhi’s managed to gather huge support of the masses in the
mid-1920s. Two prominent organizations, the Communist Party of India (CPI)
and the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) were formed during this period.

Bhagat Singh and his comrades formed the Hindustan Socialist Republican
Association (HSRA) in 1928 to fight against the colonial rule. In 1929,
the Congress, under Jawaharlal Nehru, vowed to fight for complete independence
or Purna Swaraj, and observed 26th January, 1930, as Independence
Day.

On the 12th March, 1930, Gandhiji led a non-violent march from
the Sabarmati Ashram to Dandi to protest against the salt tax imposed by the
colonial government. On reaching Dandi, Gandhiji collected sea water and boiled
it to produce salt, thereby breaking the salt law.

The government declared provincial autonomy in many provinces and declared
elections in these provinces in 1937. The Congress formed governments in 7 out
of the 11 provinces.

Two years after the Congress formed the government, the Second World War broke
out in 1939. The Congress was ready to support the colonial government in
the war in return for complete independence at the end of the war. The British
government didn’t give in, leading many Congress leaders to resign from the
ministries in protest.

Indian Independence and Partition

In August 1942, Mahatma Gandhi launched the Quit India
Movement, advocating non-violence. While Congress leaders were in jail, Muslim
League leaders mobilized the Muslims. The demand for an ‘independent Muslim
state’ became vociferous; owing to the Hindu-Muslim communal tensions of the
1920s. The Muslims passed a resolution for the same in 1940s.

The Muslims were annoyed with the Congress for rejecting their demand to form a
joint Congress-League government in the United Provinces after the 1937
elections. The Muslims gathered a huge support during the Quit India
Movement, a time when most of the Congress leaders were in Jail.

Elections were held again in the provinces in 1946. The Congress was though
successful in all the general constituencies, the Muslim League performed
exceptionally well on the seats reserved for Muslims.

Talks between the Muslim League and the Congress failed twice, even with the
mediation of the British. The Muslim League persisted in their demand for a new
independent state, Pakistan, which the Congress rejected.

To protest, the Muslim League declared the 16th August, 1946,
as Direct Action Day in Calcutta, which resulted in riots.

Though India became independent on August 15, 1947, it was partitioned into two
countries, namely India and Pakistan. During the partition, thousands of homes
were looted and burnt, many people were killed.

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